Sunday Reads: Lotsa Pens And Some Crazy Laws

In addition to fountain pens and pencils, felt tips work very well for me. So I was delighted to learn of a model that uses fountain pen ink. Pen Chalet carries them should you have an interest.

• Here Is The Craziest Law In Each State
• Drawing with a Lamy
• The Gentleman Stationer: QUEST FOR PERFECTION: MY SEARCH FOR THE BEST BURGUNDY INK
• Ana at The Well-Appointed Desk: Esterbrook Estie Honeycomb and Opus 88 Fantasia
• Fountain Pen Blog: early thoughts on the Staedtler TRX fountain pen
• A felt tip that uses fountain pen ink? Count me in!
• Doodlewash: Collecting Fountain Pens
• Notebook Stories: What if you love journals but hate journaling?
• Nathan Tardif on Noodler’s products at the Commonwealth Pen Show
• The Well-Appointed Desk: Ink Review: Sailor Studio 140
• From the Pen Cup: A Pocket Full of Bullet Pencils and The Blueberry Esterbrook Estie SE

🤓💋💋💋super💋💋💋👍 pic.twitter.com/MSj8MddZd8

— Katya Shostakovskaya (@KShostakovskaya) August 20, 2019

Herbin Vert de Gris Ink

Exaclair, Inc. sent a bottle of Herbin Vert de Gris ink to review and it did not disappoint.

Caveat: I am a longtime fan of Herbin inks but I set aside my bias when putting ink to the test. Mostly.

According to the website, the color is “based on the lovely gray/green patina that appears on aging copper”. It is a deep, dark teal. A free-flowing nib will bring out its dark side while a dry nib will make it a little less saturated and encourage a more subtle look. I shook the bottle before testing both the Herbin glass pen and the Namiki Falcon SF just in case there should be any settling. Oddly, results were slightly more green than online examples or the color swatch on the top of the box.

It is not an extremely lubricating ink, but rather a moderate one that will be more than satisfactory in most pens. I think my Parker ’51’ in Navy Gray is going to love it, especially the color. No bleed-through, show-through or feathering on Clairefontaine. A doodle on the back of a cheap envelope showed mildly uneven outlines, but that isn’t the surface on which my fountain pens get the most use.

No fancy-schmancy, two-toned, glittery look to Herbin’s Vert de Gris. Rather it is a well-behaved ink dressed in teal that could easily augment an everyday-carry (EDC) selection of blue and black. At least that’s what my pens recommend and I would not disagree.

For a second opinion, Paper Girl has a good review of Vert de Gris.

From the ExaClairUSA YouTube channel:

Sunday Reads: Red, Coral And A Shot Of Tequila

It was a colorful week with a rainbow tucked in the middle…

• It’s summer, the perfect time for a coral pen and coral ink.
• Vintage pens at Anderson Pens
• The Pen Addict: Sailor Pro Gear Tequila Sunrise: A Review
• Lori McNee: Rainbow Wings
• The Finer Point: 2019 Travelers Notebook Review: Part 1
• UK Fountain Pens: A New Notebook Option
• How ‘I Spy’ Books Are Made

From the archives, a range of red inks.

Sunday Reads: Iroshizuku, Lamy And A Drama Queen

Unlike those silly drama queens seeking attention from social media, this baby’s got the right moves – not too much victim but just enough to earn appreciation for a well-executed whine…

• Putting A Lamy To Good Use
• A falcon spotted in the wild
• The Atlantic: How the Ballpoint Pen Killed Cursive (2015)
• Anderson Pens: Iroshizuku 100th Anniversary LE Ebisu (Love this color.)
• A Pen House Survives in India
• Doodlewash: Princeton Aqua Elite Brush Review (There is a #10 round on my desk right now.)

This dog caught on the house camera being a total drama queen
(🎥 via Claire Wolstenholme FB) pic.twitter.com/QUmW7fbWkE

— ANIMALS R US (@Animal_R_Us) July 20, 2019

Sunday Reads: Edison, Italics And A Crush

Confession: I can’t use a BIC without feeling like I’m slumming. Am I a snob?

• Why I Swapped Out my BIC for a Fountain Pen
• Why I Keep an Idea Journal and Thomas Edison journal
• UK Fountain Pens: 11 phenomenal stubs and italics for any budget
• Mountain of Ink: Ink Review #785: Robert Oster Velvet Crush

Favorite traveling companions…

Sundays Reads: Filofax, Esterbrooks And A Fab Ink Video

Interested in a vintage Esterbrook fountain pen? Anderson Pens has a wide selection, serviced and ready to write.

• The Well-Appointed Desk: Review: Filofax Clipbook & Pen (FP-friendly paper)
• Anderson Pens has a ton of vintage Esterbrooks on offer
• A Snafu with a happy ending
• Polar Pencil Pusher: Notebook Review: Apica CG-54 Grid
• Fountain Pen Blog: Travelling with ink: Lake Garda revisited.
• Pen pals: These creators of exquisite writing instruments speak about their passion (h/t hisnibs.com)

Watch through to the end.

pic.twitter.com/mIGyUUY2Sh

— Satisfying Daily (@SatisfyingDaily) June 21, 2019

Sunday Reads: Pens, Inks And Doodles

I thought I had a lot of ink samples until I saw Nick Stewart’s collection…

• Fountain Pen Ink Art: SAILOR INK STUDIO SWATCH TESTS – PART 07 – THE PINKY BROWNS
• Paper for Fountain Pens (my first Tomoe River paper)
• Rediscover Analog: 8 Fountain Pens That Won’t Break the Bank
• Nick Stewart: Ink Sample Vial and Ink Swatch Card Storage Systems
• Pensive Candy (outstanding fountain pen doodles)
• WaPo: Believe it or not the fountain pen is back
• Alvaro Castagnet: Watercolor Painting Streetscape Sketch (Part1)

From the archives, a Nemosine Singularity 0.6mm italic nib